Safety ski binding

ABSTRACT

A safety ski binding for a ski, comprising a release plate having a lengthwise axis, means for connecting the release plate with the ski boot of the skier and means for releasably fixing the release plate to the ski. There is further provided a forcetransmitting element and means mounting the lower end portion of such force-transmitting element on said release plate for pivotal movement about an axis extending substantially transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of said release plate. Means cooperate with the force transmitting element to limit the pivotal movement thereof, so that forces acting upon the skier&#39;&#39;s leg are not transmitted through the ankle joint, but via the now locked force-transmitting element directly to the release plate.

United States Patent [191 Gertsch et al.

[451 July 22, 1975 1 1 SAFETY SKI BINDING [75] Inventors: Ernst Gertsch, Wengen; Ulrich Gertsch, both of lnterlaken, Switzerland Related U.S. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 87,404, Nov. 6,

1970, Pat. No. 3,753,571.

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Nov. 10, 1969 Switzerland 016697/69 [52] U.S. Cl. 280/11.35 K [51] Int. Cl. A63C 9/08 [58] Field of Search ..280/11.35 K, 11.35 C, 11.35 R, 280/11.35 F, 11.35 P, 11.35 T,

11.36; 36/25 AL, 2.5 AB, 2.5 N

3,753,571 8/1973 Gertsch et a1 2817/1135 K FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,959,022 6/1970 Germany 36/25 AL 1,100,543 l/l968 United Kingdom 280/1 1.35 F 457,235 7/1968 Switzerland 2811/1135 K Primary Examiner-David Schonberg Assistant Examiner-Milton L. Smith Attorney, Agent, or FirmWerner W. Kleeman [57] ABSTRACT A safety ski binding for a ski, comprising a release plate having a lengthwise axis, means for connecting the release plate with the ski boot of the skier and means for releasably fixing the release plate to the ski. There is further provided a force-transmitting element and means mounting the lower end portion of such force-transmitting element on said release plate for pivotal movement about an axis extending substantially transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of said release plate. Means cooperate with the force transmitting element to limit the pivotal movement thereof, so that forces acting upon the skiers leg are not transmitted through the ankle joint, but via the now locked force-transmitting element directly to the release plate.

4 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTED L 2 2 I975 SHEET SAFETY SKI BINDING CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED CASE The instant application is a continuation-in-part application of our commonly assigned, copending United States application, Ser. No. 87,404, filed Nov. 6, 1970, and entitled Safety Ski Binding now US. Pat. No. 3,753,571.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention broadly relates to safety bindings for skis and, more specifically, to a new and improved safety ski binding of the type incorporating a release plate detachably retained at the ski and connected with the ski boot, a reinforcement element for the ski boot being arranged at the release plate.

Such type broad classification of ski binding has already been known in the art, possessing a construction wherein at both sides of the release plate there are arranged flap members which are pivotable about lengthwise extending axes. In the pivoted position of these flap members they bear laterally against the lower portion of the ski boot. Since the upper of the boot does not receive any support through the action of these flap members it is accordingly necessary for the shoe upper to be constructed to be sufficiently sturdy, thereby affording sufficient lateral support for the leg of the skier above the region of the ankle bone. Yet, these flap members have the tendency of impairing or retarding movement of the leg in the direction of the lengthwise or longitudinal axis of the ski, causing difficulties in providing the desirable dampening or shock absorbing action at the ankle joint.

There has also been proposed a ski boot consisting of an inner boot and an outer boot where a reinforcement plate is provided at the back of the outer boot. However, ski boot constructions consisting of an inner boot and outer boot are impractical, complicated and expensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, there is a real need existing in the art for a safety ski binding which not only affords proper ski-release action for the skier but additionally provides a good hold for the foot of the skier at the boot. Hence, a primary object of this invention is to provide a safety ski binding which effectively and reliably fulfills this need.

Still another and more specific object of the present invention relates to an improved safety ski binding which is relatively simple in construction, economical to manufacture, reliable in operation, and serves to provide lateral support for the foot of the skier in the boot.

Yet a further significant object of the present invention relates to a safety ski binding of the type incorporating a release plate detachably mounted at the ski and a reinforcement element associated in operable relationship with the release plate, the reinforcement element serving to laterally brace the foot of the skier within the boot.

Another noteworthy objective of the present invention relates to an improved safety ski binding possessing a construction serving to laterally support the foot of the skier within the boot without impairing the release operation required of the ski binding when the skier transmits sufficient force to the binding to require release from the ski.

One additional object of the present invention relates to an improved safety ski binding which provides both lateral support to the foot of the user and good safety release action, while still being comfortable to wear and easy to use.

A further object of the invention aims at providing a direct force-transmitting system between an element and the release plate, so that the predominant load to which the skiers leg may be subjected, as for instance encountered during a fall, is not transferred through the ankle joint to the release plate and the release mechanism, but rather via a force-transmitting element.

Now, in order to implement these and still further objects of the present invention, which will become more readily apparent as the description proceeds, and in contrast to the aforenoted prior art ski binding construction, the safety ski binding of the present invention is of the type comprising a reinforcement element which is supported at its lower region for pivotal movement on the release plate and heel of the ski boot about a transversely extending axis or shaft, this reinforcement element being provided at its upper end at the region of the shoe upper with at least one stiff side element or portion which bears against the ski boot and thereby exerts a certain lateral support for the upper of the ski boot. By virtue of this arrangement, the ankle joint enjoys an exceptional lateral support while at the same time there is possible a shock absorbing action at the ankle joint in the direction of the lengthwise axis of the ski. Hence, in conjunction with this type'safety binding, it is possible for the skier to use a lighter, more comfortable and cheaper ski boot.

The invention also contemplates advantageously equipping the stiff side element with attachment means engaging about the upper of the ski boot. The reinforcement element can be connected via adjustable traction elements with the release plate or directly hingedly attached to the release plate.

One particular embodiment of the invention contem plates that the reinforcement element is provided at its upper end at the region of the shoe upper with two oppositely situated, stiff side elements between which is retained the upper of the ski boot. Both of these stiff side elements can then be adjustably mounted on a central support plate of the reinforcement element.

However, it is also possible for the reinforcement element to be equipped only at the inside region of the boot at the upper area of the shoe upper with a stiff side element and the upper of the ski boot can then be pressed against such side element by means of an enclosing band which is wrapped around the boot.

The slight damping or shock absorbing action of the ankle joint in the direction of the lengthwise axis of the ski, afforded with this safety ski binding owing to the pivotal supporting of the reinforcement element for pivotal movement about a transverse axis, brings about, during a forward fall of the skier, that the calf is initially markedly forwardly inclined, and then, in this extreme inclined position, the calf must still exert an upward tractional force upon the reinforcement element until the release plate is upwardly released. During this last phase of the fall, the ankle joint is considerably stressed and dangerous bone fractures or tearing of the Achilles tendons could occur. In order to prevent such overstressing, the release action already should occur at an earlier time during the fall of the skier, mainly when the calf has assumed the extreme inclined position and not only then when an additional. tensional force acts upwardly.

Therefore, in order to'achieve this earlier release action, a further particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention contemplates providing, at the lower end of the reinforcement element pivotably mounted for movement about a transverse axis on the release plate or the heel of the ski boot, a component or portion, which then during pivoting of the reinforcement element about such transverse axis in a forward direction serves to raise the release plate to a preparatory release position and to release such plate when reaching a certain pivotal movement.

Apart from the aforementioned features, or in fact as an independent feature of the invention, there can be provided an element which constitutes a forcetransmitting element mounted for pivotable movement about an axis extending transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of the release plate. Means cooperate with this force-transmitting element to limit the pivotal movement thereof, so that when the limiting action is attained, forces acting upon the skiers leg are not transmitted through the ankle joint, but via the now locked force-transmitting element directly to the release plate. Owing to this direct force-transmitting system which is realized by the action of the forcetransmitting element upon the release plate, the predominant load to which the skiers leg may be subjected, such'as for instance during a fall, is not transferred through the ankle joint to the release plate and the release mechanism of the binding, but rather via the locked or rigid force-transmitting element.

7 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above, will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a first exemplary embodiment of safety ski binding equipped with a reinforcement element according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear view of. the safety ski binding illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of a second embodiment of a safety ski binding equipped with a reinforcement element according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side view of a third embodiment of a safety ski binding equipped with a reinforcement element according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the embodiment of the safety ski binding depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, upon the ski 1 there is secured a sleeve member 2 of a toe locking mechanism. Within the sleeve member 2 there is arranged a locking bolt member 3 which is mounted so as to be universally pivotable in all directions from the illustrated central position. A non-illustrated compression spring within the sleeve member 2 acts upon bolt member 3 and tends to return the bolt member 3 to its central position after it has been pivoted out of such position and to retain it in the central or neutral position, Locking bolt member 3 cooperates with a stepped portion 4a provided at the upwardly extending forward edge 4 of a release plate 5. The edge 4 carries a sole retaining means or tongue 6, engaging over the forward end of the sole 7 of the ski boot 8 and retaining such ski boot against the release plate 5.

It will be observed that the rear end of the release plate 5 possesses a bevelled or inclined portion 9 cooperating with an appropriately bevelled or inclined recess provided in a plate member 10 attached in any suitable fashion to the body of the ski 1. Accordingly, the release plate 5 is therefore detachably connected with the ski 1 through the action of the locking bolt 3 and the inclined portion 9. Furthermore, at the rear end of the release plate 5 there are provided a succession of holes or bores 11, as shown. In one of these bores 11 there is threadably attached, at both ends of such bore, the respective leg of a respective rightangled bent of L-shaped bolt or rod member 12. At the other leg of each such bolt or rod member 12 there is threadably attached an adjustment sleeve 13 into which there is threaded the one leg of a still further associated right-angled bent or L-shaped bolt member or rod 14. The other leg of each such rod member 14 is threaded into a support plate 15 defining a reinforcement and/or force-transmitting element for the ski binding.

Now, it will be recognized that this support plate 15 is thus hingedly connected with the release plate 5 through the action of the bolt members 14, adjustment sleeves 13, and bolt members 12 arranged at both sides of the support plate 15 and defining adjustable tractional or tension connection elements between the reinforcement plate and release plate. Furthermore, at the release or support plate 15 there is arranged a holddown means in the form of a roller element 16 serving to bear against the upper region of the heel of the ski boot 8, thereby bracing the support plate 15 against the heel of the boot, and to form an abutment for limiting the pivotal movement of the plate 15, so as to essentially transmit forces acting on the skiers leg directly to the release plate 5. An adjustment screw 17 threaded into the support plate 15 nests against the ski boot 8 and determines the inclined position of the support plate 15.

Furthermore, two side plates 18 are adjustably arranged at the upper end of the support plate 15, each side plate 18 carrying two pins or journals 19, 20 which are guided in appropriate holes of the support plate 15, as best shown by referring to FIG. 2. Each of the pins 20 is provided with a threaded portion onto which there is threaded a threaded nut member 21. Each nut member 21 is arranged at a recess or opening of the support plate 15 so that it is accessible to the user, and by appropriately rotating the nut members 21, the corresponding side plate 18 can be laterally adjusted. One end of a belt or strap 22 engages with one of the side plates 18, strap 22 being covered by a suitable cushion 23, the opposite end of the strap 22 being secured in detachable fashion by any suitable fastening device, such as a buckle or snap fastener, with the other side plate 18. To afford adequate comfort for the user it is desirable to provide at the inside of the side plates 18 and the support plate 15 suitable cushioning elements or equivalent devices, as are conventionally used in the skiing art.

The side plates 18 serve to impart a lateral or side supporting action to the shin bone above the region of the ankle joint. This in effect means that even with a less robust construction of the ski boot there is still attained good guiding of the skis. Furthermore. since the reinforcing or support plate is pivotably supported at the release plate 5 and at the heel of the boot there is simultaneously rendered possible a dampening or shock absorbing action forwardly and rearwardly of the ankle joint.

The extent of pivotal motion of the support or reinforcement plate 15 about the transverse axis in the forward direction can be limited, for. instance, byproviding an impact or limit stop pin means 24 on the support or reinforcement plate 15 with which cooperate the adjustment sleeve members 13, whereas limiting of the rocking or pivotal motion of the plate 15 towards the rear, can for instance be effected by the provision of an adjustable tension element 25 connected at one end to the side plate 18, and at its other end to the upstanding edge 4 of the release plate 5. By limiting this rocking or pivotal motion of the reinforcement element 15 it is insured that when the skier falls and has reached the limits of the allowable pivotal movement, the forces exerted by the skiers legs will be transmitted directly to the release plate 5, resulting in a rapid and positive release action of the binding, contributing to effective prevention of skiing injuries.

Instead of using two side plates 18 it is equally possible to provide only a single side plate at the inside of the ski boot, and to have the soft strap member 22 guided about the shoe upper in such a way that it presses the shin bone against this single side plate and thus laterally supports the foot of the user in this way. Conceptually, one need only imagine that the arrangement of FIGS. 1 and 2 hasjust a single side plate 18 and the strap 22 is wrapped around the skiers leg above the ankle such as to urge same against this single side plate.

In the exemplary embodiment of ski binding depicted in FIG. 3, a release plate 26 is detachably connected to the ski 31 at its forward upwardly protruding edge 27 and at its rearwardly upwardly protruding edge 28 by means of a respective locking bolt member 30 mounted in an associated sleeve member 29 so as to be pivotable against the action of spring means in all directions, as previously explained with respect to FIG. I. The sole of the ski boot 32 is retained at its forward region against the release plate 26 due to the action of the sole retaining means or tongue member 33 mounted at the release plate-edge portion 27, as shown. On the other hand, at the rearwardly upstanding edge 28 of the release plate 26 there is pivotably connected to the transverse extending pivot shaft or bolt 35 a substantially dishshaped reinforcement element 34 formed of, for example, metal or plastic. This rreinforcement element 34 carries a roller element 36, which, similarly to the arrangement of FIGS. I and 2, bears against the upward region of the heel portion of the ski boot and thus serves to retain such ski boot against the release plate 26. This roller element 36 here, like the roller 16 of FIG. I, also serves to limit the pivotal movement of the force-transmitting element 34, to establish the previously explained direct force-transmitting system.

Here also. the reinforcement element 34 possesses at its upper region 2 stiff side elements 37 between which there is retained the upper of the associated ski boot 32. One end of a belt 38 is connected with one of the side elements 37, belt 38 similarly being provided or covered with a cushion 39, the other end of this belt 38 being detachably connected by means of a nonvisible fastener, such as a buckle or snap closure element with the other side member or element 37. Just as in the case of the initially described embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the stiff side elements 37 also afford a lateral support to the shin bone above the ankle joint, thereby providing good guiding of the skis and still rendering possible a dampening or shock absorbing action forwardly and rearwardly at the ankle joint.

In the embodiment of safety ski binding depicted in FIG. 4, the release plate 40 is similarly detachably connected to the ski at its forward upwardly extending edge 41 and at its rearward upwardly extending edge 42 by means of a respective locking bolt member 44 mounted for universal pivotal movement in an associated sleeve member 43 against the action of spring means as previously explained. Here also a sole retaining mechanism 46 mounted to the forward edge 41 of the release plate 40 serves to retain the sole at the tip region of the ski boot 47 against the release plate 40. At the rear edge 42 of the release plate 40 there is piv otably mounted on the transverse pin or pivot shaft 48 a substantially dish-shaped reinforcement or forcetransmitting element 49. Reinforcement element 49, just as in the case of the reinforcement element 34 of the arrangement of FIG. 3, is formed as a single piece from a suitable metal or plastic material. Furthermore. the reinforcement element 49 pivots about the transverse axis defined by the pivot shaft 48 and carries a holddown roller element 50 bearing against the top of the heel of the ski boot 47 for pressing and fixedly retaining the rear portion of such ski boot against the release plate 40 and limiting the pivotal movement of the element 49, to provide for the direct transmission of forces from the force-transmitting element 49 to the release plate 40 as afore-explained.

The reinforcement element 49 possesses at its upper region two stiff side elements 51 between which there is retained the upper of the associated ski boot 47. Once again, one end of a belt member 52 or equivalent strap or similar expedient engages one of the side elements 51, strap 52 again being similarly covered with a cushion 53, the other end of such strap being attached by means of a non-visible releasable fastening closure or buckle with the other side element 51. The provision of the stiff or rigid side elements 51 impart to the shin bone above the region of the ankle joint a lateral support in order to afford good guiding for the skis and therefore rendering possible a dampening action at the ankle joint forwardly and rearwardly. In this embodiment the reinforcement element 49 advantageously possesses at its lower end a shoulder 54 having a curve or domed bottom edge 55 which bears against a metallic plate member 56 secured to the associated ski 45. When the reinforcement element 49 is rocked forwardly, then, due to the cooperation between the domed lower edge 55 of the shoulder 54 with the metallic plate member 56 the release plate 40 is raised at its rear region from the ski into a preparatory release position and when reaching a certain maximum permissible pivotal movement or rocking the release plate is then completely released from the ski. The releasing action under consideration can be undertaken at that time when there is present a pronounced inclined position of the calf of the skiers leg.

While there is shown and described present preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims.

Accordingly, what is claimed is: v

1. in a safety ski binding for a ski, a release plate having a lengthwise axis, a reinforcement element, means for mounting said element on said release plate for pivotal movement about an axis extending substantially transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of said releaseplate, said element having a length such that said element extends along the upper of an associated ski boot to a point at least above the ankle joint of the skiers leg, means for placing the element in contact with the skiers leg for movement therewith, and means for locking said element in a predetermined position of pivoting motion thereof, so that forces acting upon the for mounting said element on said release plate for pivotal movement about an axis extending substantially transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of said release plate, said element having a length such that said element extends along the upper of an associated ski boot to a point at least above the ankle joint of the skiers leg, means for placing theelement in contact with the skiers leg for movement therewith, means for limiting the pivotal movement of said element to thus lock said element in a predetermined position of pivoting motion thereof, so that forces acting upon the skiers leg are no longer transmitted predominantly through the ankle joint, but'via the thus locked element directly to the release plate, said limiting means further acting as a holddown means engaging a rearward portion of the sole of the ski boot for urging the heel of the ski boot against the release plate.

4. The safety ski binding as defined in claim 1, wherein said locking means further acts as a holddown means engaging a rearward portion of the sole of the ski boot for urging the heel of the ski boot against the release plate. 

1. In a safety ski binding for a ski, a release plate having a lengthwise axis, a reinforcement element, means for mounting said element on said release plate for pivotal movement about an axis extending substantially transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of said release plate, said element having a length such that said element extends along the upper of an associated ski boot to a point at least above the ankle joint of the skier''s leg, means for placing the element in contact with the skier''s leg for movement therewith, and means for locking said element in a predetermined position of pivoting motion thereof, so that forces acting upon the skier''s leg are no longer transmitted predominantly through the ankle joint, but via the thus locked element directly to the release plate.
 2. The safety ski binding as defined in claim 1, wherein said locking means is operatively connected with the element.
 3. In a safety ski binding for a ski, a release plate having a lengthwise axis, a reinforcement element, means for mounting said element on said release plate for pivotal movement about an axis extending substantially transversely with respect to the lengthwise axis of said release plate, said element having a length such that said element extends along the upper of an associated ski boot to a point at least above the ankle joint of the skier''s leg, means for placing the element in contact with the skier''s leg for movement therewith, means for limiting the pivotal movement of said element to thus lock said element in a predetermined position of pivoting motion thereof, so that forces acting upon the skier''s leg are no longer transmitted predominantly through the ankle joint, but via the thus locked element directly to the release plate, said limiting means further acting as a holddown means engaging a rearward portion of the sole of the ski boot for urging the heel of the ski boot against the release plate.
 4. The safety ski binding as defined in claim 1, wherein said locking means further acts as a holddown means engaging a rearward portion of the sole of the ski boot for urging the heel of the ski boot against the release plate. 